The key elements of practice consist of the following:
- Tools (best practices, benchmarking, and raising or lowering the bar)
- Objectives (concerns, goals, and outcomes)
- Support system (collaboration, encouragement, and mentoring)
A Personal Philosophy of Life
by
Swami Rama
So first of all, a human being should learn to understand himself on all levels and then he can understand all, the Self of all. And he can understand that absolute Self which is called absolute Truth. This is the right system and there are three schools, and any of these schools will help you: the school of meditation, the school of contemplation, and the school of prayer. If you learn to understand prayer, what prayer is, you can easily evoke your emotional self and attain that height of ecstasy and be there. If you understand the philosophy of life through contemplation you can attain the goal of life. If you understand the school of meditation and systematically meditate, you can attain the fourth state which is called sleepless sleep, you can attain the purpose of life. But if you practice meditation for a few days, contemplation for a few days, and then prayer for a few days, and finally decide that none of them suits you, you won’t attain anything. The basic thing is that we create certain problems and barriers for ourselves, because of our fears and confusion. We have certain questions in our mind and we should learn to tackle them first. As long as you remain under the pressure of fears you cannot do anything. And talking about God is a good pastime, but you don’t get anything. You may become godly but you cannot attain God, you cannot have peace, you cannot have happiness. Forgive me if I am crushing your sentiments but this is the truth.
So first of all, a human being should learn to understand himself on all levels and then he can understand all, the Self of all. And he can understand that absolute Self which is called absolute Truth. This is the right system and there are three schools, and any of these schools will help you: the school of meditation, the school of contemplation, and the school of prayer. If you learn to understand prayer, what prayer is, you can easily evoke your emotional self and attain that height of ecstasy and be there. If you understand the philosophy of life through contemplation you can attain the goal of life. If you understand the school of meditation and systematically meditate, you can attain the fourth state which is called sleepless sleep, you can attain the purpose of life. But if you practice meditation for a few days, contemplation for a few days, and then prayer for a few days, and finally decide that none of them suits you, you won’t attain anything. The basic thing is that we create certain problems and barriers for ourselves, because of our fears and confusion. We have certain questions in our mind and we should learn to tackle them first. As long as you remain under the pressure of fears you cannot do anything. And talking about God is a good pastime, but you don’t get anything. You may become godly but you cannot attain God, you cannot have peace, you cannot have happiness. Forgive me if I am crushing your sentiments but this is the truth.
Let us learn to enjoy one thing. All the great scriptures of the world,
which have been revealed to the sages from the depths of their deep
contemplation, say one and the same thing. A human being has been
created exactly in the image of God. When God created human beings in
His own image, why do human beings suffer? It’s because human beings
have forgotten their Creator; that’s why they suffer. Otherwise there is
no difference between man and God. The moment you realize that you don’t
exist, but God exists, you are free. And in reality that’s true. All the
scriptures say, God is omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent, God is
everywhere. Then where are you? Where is there place for you to exist?
How can you claim that you and I exist somewhere and this is mine and
that is yours? It’s the human mind that creates all the barriers for
individuals. We have to understand this whole philosophy, get rid of all
our confusions, be at peace and start realizing the great glory that is
hidden deep within our hearts and minds. Therefore every individual
should try to understand one thing: I will know myself on all levels in
this lifetime and get enlightened here and now. There should be this
determination.
http://www.swamij.com/swami-rama-personal-philosophy.htm
Quite
often, it is takes the practice of our ancient disciplines to improve
our knowledge and techniques of self-mastery, thereby giving us the
power needed to transform our lives into a healthy, meaningful and happy
state of being.
Jon Dunnemann
